Ireland’s school transport scheme has been subject to changes in line with the rising cost of living in Ireland.
The government opted to lower the maximum payment for families with children in primary and secondary schools.
Although a timeframe for the changes has yet to be confirmed, reports suggest that the lower threshold will be in effect from July, and therefore ready for the 2022/2023 school year.
Before the changes, secondary school pupils were charged €350 per pupil or 2 payments of €175, with a max price per family of €650.
Meanwhile, primary school bus users were charged a fare of €100 per pupil or 2 payments of €50 with a max charge of €220 per family.
The cut-off for secondary school kids will be €500 when new prices come into effect and €150 for primary school users.
For those availing of the service up to the end of 2022, half of the amount can be paid by July 29, and then a ticket for travel up to December 20, will be issued.
The other 50% must be paid by November 22, 2022, in order to receive an extended ticket, valid for travel up to the end of the school year in 2023.
The School Transport Scheme is currently open for applications with the closing date being Friday, April 29, 2022.
In order to apply, you should write directly to the School Transport section of the Department of Education.
To be eligible for school transport, a student must:
- Be enrolled in a recognised post-primary school
- Live 4.8 kilometres or more from the nearest school
Under the scheme, parents have to arrange to bring their child to the nearest pick-up point on the bus route.
Generally, bus routes are organised so that no pupil has more than 3.2 kilometres to travel to a pick-up point.
